“Why no backpacks?”

Many of our friends and contributors have been asking about our back-to-school supplies giveaway event that the Baldwin Center has hosted for several years. While we truly appreciate your dedication and eagerness to support such a good cause, we have decided to turn our efforts to an equally worthy endeavor.

Here’s why. The Pontiac School District, in partnership with local businesses and organizations, is holding its second annual Back-To-School Rally offering fun activities includinga book bag giveaway large enough to supply all school children in Pontiac with a new backpack full of supplies!

In order to avoid duplication of services, the Baldwin Center is not asking for notebook paper and colored pencils, but rather dark and white polos and khaki-style pants, as well as other clothing and monetary donations. (Click on the list at the right to download the flyer.)

The goal of Baldwin Center Uniform Drive 2015 is to collect clothing, gift cards, and money to benefit our youth program participants who attend Pontiac public or charter schools, where uniforms are required. We hope you will support this effort to send our deserving students back to school dressed for success!

Click on image or visit http://www.pontiac.k12.mi.us/Domain/4

By the way, Baldwin’s After School Program has its own supply wish list, so if you have already collected donations, we will gladly accept them and pass on remaining supplies to support Pontiac’s Back-To-School Rally 2015.

“Past, Present, Future” is the theme of Summer Enrichment Camp 2015 at the Baldwin Center. Camp runs June 29 – August 7, 2015, to provide six weeks of academic support, enrichment activities, field trips, food, and fun for 65-70 elementary aged children in the community.

Just as in summers past, there are many present opportunities to volunteer or provide supplies to make the future brighter for the kids.

Summer Program Volunteer Flier 2015

Summer Program Wish List

Past and future are contained in every present moment. Whatever we are today is the result of what we have thought, spoken, and done in all the present moments before now – just as what we shall be tomorrow is the result of what we think, say, and do today.

Eknath Easwaran, Words to Live By

In observance of the Memorial Day Holiday, the Baldwin Center will be CLOSED Sunday-Monday, May 24 – 25, 2015.

Please take time this weekend to honor those who have made sacrifices in service to others. Remember their legacy and acknowledge and appreciate the veterans in our midst, as well as the men and women who serve today.

THANK YOU to all the volunteers and donors who helped us brighten the holidays for local families. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

As the holiday programs come to a close, the Baldwin Center staff will have a few days off to spend with their families. The Baldwin Center will be closed from Tuesday (11 am) December 23 through December 26. Soup Kitchen will be open on Saturday and Sunday, December 27-28, at the usual times. The Clothes Closet will be open on Saturday, December 27 at the usual time.

The Baldwin Center will resume normal business hours on Monday, December 29, 2014, and close again for the New Year’s Holiday, December 31, 2014-January 1, 2015. Hours will resume as usual on Friday, January 2, 2015.

THANK YOU to all the donors and volunteers who helped to make the Thanksgiving Holiday Basket giveaway a success!

The Baldwin Center wishes you a Happy Thanksgiving. We are CLOSED WEDNESDAY – FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 26-28 so that our staff can enjoy the holidays with family. Meals will be served at the regular times on Saturday and Sunday.

When we come back from our holiday break, we will be preparing for the December Holiday Basket giveaway and Holiday Store. With your help, we hope to fill our empty warehouse and collect another 250 turkeys. And we hope to provide a pleasant shopping experience for the 250 heads of households as they choose from donated gifts for their family members, including children, teens, and adults in the home.

To view or download flyers for Holiday Baskets and Holiday Store, click on the graphics on the right side of this page.

Thanksgiving brings to mind our blessings and our plans for holiday shopping. In the season of gratitude, we are also thinking of those less fortunate.

For 250 families who need holiday assistance, there is the Baldwin Center in Pontiac. The Baldwin Center provides Thanksgiving and Christmas food baskets and the opportunity to shop without cost at the agency’s Holiday Store, which is stocked with donations from local churches, organizations, and individuals.

Qualified families for this year have been identified. One adult member of each family shops with a volunteer escort by appointment on December 17, 19, or 20. Each family member receives new clothing and a personal gift or toy, along with gift wrapping.

“The Baldwin Center provides low income residents of Pontiac with food, clothing, literacy support, and social empowerment,” explained Elizabeth Longley, Executive Director. “The Holiday Store is our way of not only clothing needy residents, but also offering them gifts that will help make their holiday a little happier.”

“In order to do this, we need the support of the community, through donations of new clothing and gifts. We welcome general items like artificial trees, ornaments, holiday cards and stocking stuffers; clothing for all ages, especially outerwear; and personal gifts for men, women, teens, children ages 6-12, and infants to five years of age.” Monetary donations are also needed to help supplement the gifts and food baskets.

At the Baldwin Center holiday warehouse, there is a sufficient supply of soup, as well as copious cans of corn. In order for 250 families in need to receive Thanksgiving Holiday Baskets consisting of a turkey dinner and a well-stocked family-friendly pantry, we are depending on supporters to contribute other non-perishable foods to fill the empty warehouse pallets by November 14th. We need stuffing, potatoes, sweet potatoes/yams, gravy, cranberry sauce, applesauce, pickles/olives, desserts, peanut butter, jelly, mac & cheese, rice, dry beans, and meals-in-a-box. We also need frozen turkeys, paper towel, toilet paper and monetary donations to purchase the fresh groceries. We are open for donations Monday – Friday, 9 am – 4:30 pm, Saturdays, 10 am – 2:00 pm, Sundays 12:30 – 3:00 pm. To find out more about Baldwin Center’s Holiday Baskets or Holiday Store, you can download the flyers posted on the front page of our website.

This is not the title of a western novel or a cowboy flick. It is, however, a unique opportunity to help feed the needs of the community by going out to eat. The Baldwin Center has been chosen to receive a portion of the proceeds raised by Rusty Bucket Restaurant and Tavern through the non-profit organization Round It Up America. If you eat at a Rusty Bucket and round up your tab to the nearest dollar, the money is used to help our cause.

There are two locations in Michigan supporting the Baldwin Center Soup Kitchen, including the Bloomfield location on Woodward at Square Lake, and the Northville location on Sheldon Road at Five Mile.

To find out more about the Rusty Bucket Restaurant and Tavern, click here or go to www.myrustybucket.com

To find out more about Round It Up America, click here or go to www.rounditupamerica.org.

For their annual in-gathering project, the United Methodist Women of the Ann Arbor District chose to support the Baldwin Center Holiday Store drive, Clothes Closet, and personal supplies pantry. On Saturday, October 4, 2014, we picked up a big red van full of donations that will help us meet our goal to provide holiday gifts in December for 250 families and in our ongoing mission to feed, clothe, educate, and empower the Pontiac community.

The Baldwin Center was also a project site for the Detroit Renaissance District’s third annual Hands 4 Detroit mission day. Six adults and eight youth spent the day packing and moving non-perishable food items to our Holiday Basket warehouse, exchanging seasonal clothing between storage and shopping areas in the Clothes Closet, unloading the big red van full of recent donations, moving supplies into storage, and cleaning in the Youth Center.

If you see our friends and neighbors from Air International of Auburn Hills working on the premises of Baldwin Center October 2 and October 7, please say hello and thank them for their continued support of our mission.

“In the last two years, Air International employees have volunteered for over 1,400 hours at the Baldwin Center. Several projects have been completed, including fabrication of a hoop house, which allows the Baldwin Center to grow vegetables and fruit 10 months a year. Employees have also donated clothing, food, and money to the facility.”http://www.ai-thermal.com/culture/corporate-social-responsibility

In an effort to improve service to the Baldwin community, starting today, Wednesday, October 1, 2o14, the Baldwin Center Clothes Closet will be open for donations and shopping the following days and times:

Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays: 7 am – 1 pm

Saturdays: 10 am – 2 pm

The Baldwin Center holiday programs depend on the generosity of donors and volunteers. If you would like to add the Holiday Store to your family’s shopping list or your organization’s giving tree, click on the image below to obtain a printable version. Thank you.

Every September, General Motors employees have an opportunity to give back to the community. During teamGM Cares Week 2014, September 8 – 12, our friends and neighbors who work at the local GM Powertrain facility will come to work at the Baldwin Center. For three days, they will be trimming, transforming, repairing, restoring, painting, preparing, constructing, and caring. We look forward to their visit and we appreciate all they have done to get ready. We also appreciate the GM associates who run collection drives to benefit the Baldwin Center. Thank you teamGM!

The Baldwin Center will be closed on Sunday, August 31, and Monday, September 1, 2014, in observance of Labor Day.

Have a safe and happy holiday.

On August 1, Food Services Manager, Michelle Tocco, marked 20 years as a Baldwin employee. Michelle says she never would have predicted that her work life would have brought her here. The rest of us cannot imagine the Baldwin Center without the energy and compassion she brings to the soup kitchen as well as all the other client services she manages. Happy Anniversary, Michelle.

Have you been thinking about clearing out your closets? Procrastinate no longer! The Baldwin Center Clothes Closet is in need of clothing for men, women, and children, as well as sheets and blankets for all bed sizes. Donate your clean, gently used items and you will receive a tax receipt and a smile.

Sylvia Wheeling saw a great hunger in the city of Pontiac years ago and started the Baldwin Family Kitchen, now known as the Baldwin Center. Over the years hundreds of thousands of meals have been served as a result of this woman who decided to step up and do something.

Sylvia remained with the Baldwin Center until 2012 as the Food Service Director. Her legacy to this community was her passion for a quality and inclusive food ministry which Baldwin has come to represent.

Visitation and Funeral arrangements are being handled by the Juengel & Mellendorf Funeral Home in Sebewaing, Michigan, Sylvia’s family home. Her funeral will be on Monday, June 30, in Sebawing.

The Baldwin Center will have a community memorial service in Sylvia’s honor on Thursday, July 10th at 10:30 am with a luncheon to follow.

Today, 220,000 children who rely on free and reduced-price school lunches are out on summer break. Through a partnership with Michigan No Kid Hungry, they can continue to get their meals FOR FREE at summer food sites called “Meet Up and Eat Up”. Here is a list of the sites participating: 2014 SFSP SITES

The program will begin on June 23rd and will run through August 15th.

We need you help to let parents, caregivers and kids know about Meet Up and Eat Up, where kids can get a tasty meal and hang out with their friends. YOU can help by printing and distributing THIS FLYER in your community!!

This week’s Art Van Charity Challenge. The charity with the greatest number of unique (different) donors wins $1000. A donation of $10 is the minimum amount per “vote”. Donate now to help your favorite cause…The Baldwin Center.

We are thrilled! The Baldwin Center has been chosen to be part of the Art Van Million Dollar Charity Challenge, a fundraising campaign launched by Art Van Furniture. To help meet the challenge, you can click here or find the “Make an Impact” box with the multi-colored tree to the far right on our home page and click on the “Give” corner or “Donate Now” button.

We are now able to accept after hours donations of clothing and small non-fragile items in our new container outside the Clothes Closet fence on Poplar Avenue.

If you wish to contribute to the fun at Baldwin Center Summer Enrichment Camp, consider sharing some supplies. For a printable version of the supply list, click Word Doc or PDF Donations can be brought to the Youth Center or the main building during hours of operation. Please label “Summer Camp”.

In the last couple of weeks, we have received some BIG group donations from friends of the Baldwin Center. Baldwin’s Clothes Closet Manager, Mitzy, was so happy to have all the nice things to offer to clients. We want you to know that we are very THANKFUL for the individual and group generosity that has and will make a difference in the lives of the Baldwin community.

GM – Pontiac Stamping: 2 trucks full of clothing, etc.

GM – Powertrain in Pontiac: 65 bags of clothing, etc.

The Village Club Foundation of Bloomfield Hills: 5 carloads of diapers, laundry detergent, Mother’s Day clothes, and much more

The Baldwin Center has been chosen to benefit from a two week fundraiser by Hold on to Hope. During that time T-shirts will be sold and 50% of the proceeds will go to The Baldwin Center.

Our mission is to feed, clothe, educate, and empower the people of Pontiac.
Now you can feed your need for style, clothe yourself in a cool tee or hoodie, educate yourself about non-profit needs, and empower your sense of community.

There will be NO 2 pm community service orientations March 20 and March 27 at the Baldwin Center. Court-ordered community service volunteers seeking service hours are encouraged to contact other organizations.

Due to weather conditions and circumstances beyond our control, Focus Hope postponed its shipment for the Baldwin Center. All Focus Hope pickups and deliveries are rescheduled for next week. March 13th pickups will be available March 20th. March 15th deliveries will be available March 22nd. We apologize for the inconvenience.

We are so excited and proud to share our new video Baldwin Center “The Mission” made possible through the generosity of Group Associates and created by Nice Work Productions. This donor-funded, professionally made video features staff, volunteers, and clients talking about the Baldwin Center’s impact on the community. Please share our story and thank the donors and creators who made it possible. If you have not seen it yet, click on the link to see familiar places and faces —maybe your own. Baldwin Center Video 2014

The Baldwin Center distributed Holiday Baskets of canned goods, fresh food, paper products, and turkeys to 300 families on Tuesday, November 26, thanks to the generosity of many donors of turkeys, food, and funds, and the efforts of many volunteers who sorted, packed, and distributed the food! THANK YOU to everyone who contributed!

It was a HUGE but successful undertaking and we want to do it AGAIN!

But now our cupboards are bare, i.e., the warehouse is practically empty. We know we can count on our volunteers and donors to make it all happen. Our next Holiday Basket giveaway is Thursday, December 19, 2013, so we need the food by December 14, our Saturday warehouse sorting day before the distribution.

YOU make the holidays better for all of us at Baldwin Center. Thank you for your generous support of our mission to Feed, Clothe, Educate, and Empower our Pontiac neighbors.

Help Baldwin distribute over 700 backpacks to Pontiac school children.

The Baldwin Center is currently accepting donations of school supplies and backpacks for its annual backpack give away. Last year over 700 backpacks were distributed, enriching the learning process for many children around the Pontiac community. Each backpack was stuffed with all the supplies needed to begin the school year. The donations will be distributed August 29th 2013 starting at 10am followed by a luncheon at noon.

Join us Thursday July 18th and enjoy an evening of ice cream, treats and music all on the beautiful grounds of Goldner Walsh Garden & Home. All proceeds from this event will help to replace Baldwin’s walk-in freezer.

Thank you to all who attended the Heart of Baldwin Gala Fundraising Event. We truly appreciate your generosity and kindness. The Baldwin Center would not be able to provide our wonderful services and successfully accomplish our mission to feed, clothe, educate and empower the community of Pontiac without your willingness to help. This first year event raised over $40,000 to help further our mission. Heart of Baldwin award recipient videos: Sylvia Wheeling and Oakland University.

Jennifer Hammond from Fox 2 News presented Sylvia Wheeling with the first Heart of Baldwin Service Award. Oakland University also received a Heart of Baldwin Award.

Attendees were busy bidding on items in the silent auction and competed to gather wonderful prizes during the live auction.

Lafayette Grande in downtown Pontiac was the perfect location for Baldwin’s first ever gala event

Guests were treated to wonderful food, drinks, live and silent auctions, and a live band.

Thanks to all our wonderful corporate sponsors for the wonderful evening.